Drama Club Constitution

Drama Club will be the official name. Hereafter in the constitution it shall be abbreviated as DC.

Section 2: Purpose/Mission

2A:The mission of DC is to promote knowledge of theater practices through involvement in various activities, events, and performances. We seek to involve the entire CSB/SJU community in immersion and enjoyment of various forms of theater art, used both as for entertainment and for education. Activities, events, and performances of the club include, but are not limited to:

•· Conducting and hosting theater-related workshops

•· Producing student-directed performances and monologues for the CSB/SJU community and the surrounding area

•· Attending and discussing theater performances and touring the spaces in which such performances take place in

2B: We commit to following the missions of the College of Saint Benedict and Saint John's University as Catholic, Benedictine institutions and will respect its policies and guidelines.

Section 3: Affiliation:

At this time DC is not affiliated with any regional/national organizations.

Article II: Membership

Section 1: Eligibility for Membership

DC is open to any student registered at CSB or SJU.

Section 2: Voting Member Criteria

A student becomes a voting member upon joining the club. To keep voting rights, the member must take an active part in the club by attending and/or participating in at least 5 meetings/activities/events sponsored by the club during the school year based upon attendance taken at the meetings/activities/events.

Section 3: Removal of Members

The process to remove any member who is not in good standing with the club is as follows: the student whose membership is in question will receive an email notification from the club secretary two weeks prior to the meeting which has on its agenda the vote for removal. If the student would like to remain in the club, he/she may notify the club secretary who will bring this request to the club officers for consideration.

Article III: Officers

Section 1: Officer Qualifications

The qualifications a student must have to be eligible to be an officer are as follows: GPA of at least 2.0 (confirmed on honor system), willingness to commit themselves to the duties of his or her position, and must have some knowledge and a love of theater. All officers must be current CSB/SJU students and must comply with Joint Club Board policies and procedures. See Article IV for Election procedures.

Section 2: Elected Officers

The positions in a non-hierarchical structure are President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary. The Department of Student Activities contact person is the President, the Co-Funding Board (CFB) contact is the Treasurer, and the Joint Club Board (JCB) contact is the Vice President.

Section 3: Duties of Officers

Terms of office will be the academic year, April 1 - March 31, unless there is knowledge of only being able to serve one semester, in which case two people will be elected for that position, one to serve in the summer/fall semester (April 1 - December 20) and one to serve the spring semester (December 20 - March 31).

The Duties of officers are as follows:

•· President: plans and leads activities at meetings with all officers, presides at meetings, calls special meetings, primary contact with the institutions, runs the election process, and works with the Treasurer to prepare budget/allocation requests.

•· Secretary: plans and leads activities at meetings with all officers, takes and distributes minutes of all club meetings, recorder keeper (current and past members, files minutes, etc.), serves as club historian, notifies members of meetings, handles the official correspondence of the club, and maintains the club website.

In the event a vacancy should occur (resignation or removal), provisions will be made to fill the vacancy. In the event that the President leaves office, the Vice President will assume those duties until a special election is held. See the special election section of Article IV.

Section 5: Removal of Officers

A petition to remove the officer in question must be submitted to another officer after consultation with the club advisor. This petition must contain the signatures of 50% of voting members. When such petition is received, the President (or Vice President if the student President is in question) shall call a meeting of the club to determine whether or not the officer should be removed. Grounds for removal are to be presented by the officer in charge at a regular or special club meeting. The officer in question shall be provided an opportunity to present a defense either in person or in writing. A quorum shall be present, and a simple majority vote of the voting members shall decide upon removal.

Section 6: Appeal of Removal of Officers

To appeal the club's decision, a removed officer may petitionfor signatures of 50% of the voting members in order to be reinstated. When such a petition is received, the President shall call a meeting of the club officers and advisor to determine whether or not the former officer should be reinstated.

Article IV: Elections

Section 1: Nomination Process

Officer candidates will be nominated by club members or through self-nomination at the election meeting.

Section 2: Election

Elections are held at the designated election meeting to be once every spring before April 1. The Department of Student Activities will be notified of the new officers before April 1. Election procedures are as followed: nominated officer candidates will give a brief speech to the club as to their motivations and intentions to becoming a club officer, after all the candidates for a specific position speak, a vote by secret ballot shall be taken, the candidate with the most votes will become the officer for that position. This process will be repeated for each officer position. A quorum will be present at the elections meeting. A person may serve a maximum of two terms in a particular position.

Section 3: Special Elections

Within 4 weeks of vacancy occurring, a new officer must be elected. The same procedures from Section 2 are to be followed, with dates revised as appropriate.

Article V: Advisor

Section 1: Selection

The club advisor shall be chosen by a vote.

Section 2: Duties

The advisor duties are as follows: explain institutional policy/procedure to club officers, provide continuity for the club from year to year, act as a resource to the group, attend programs that may have liability/risk for the institutions, intervene when knowledge of illegal activity contrary to CSB/SJU policy occur, and attend some meetings/activities.

Article VI: Meetings

Section 1: Regular Meeting/Club Activities

Regular club meetings will be held every two weeks.

Section 2: Special Meetings

Special meetings may be called in order to accommodate specific activities, discuss certain club information, and as needed. The process used to call these meetings will be by email.

Section 3: Parliamentary Authority

Robert's Rules of Order will be the guide for meetings.

Section 4: Quorum

All present constitute a quorum.

Article VII: Committees

Section 1: Committee Structure

Committees will be formed as necessary to plan and organize club activities/events. A volunteer club member will become the committee chair.

Article VIII: Finances

Section 1: Co-Funding Board

The club will apply for CFB monies and if allocated resources, the club will follow all CFB and institutional regulations.

Section 2: Honorariums

Officers or members will not receive an honorarium/stipend from the organization.

Article IX: Amendements

Section 1: Ratification

The process to be used regarding proposed constitutional amendments: A petition for an amendment will be brought to the club officers who will add the proposed amendment to the agenda. Proposed amendments to the constitution will be sent to the membership in advance of the meeting where a vote on the amendment will take place. At a regularly scheduled meeting the vote on the amendment will take place. A quorum of voting members must be present and 80% of those in attendance must vote for the amendment. If the amendment is passed, the change will take place as soon as the DSA and JCB approve the amendment.

Section 2: Submittal to Department of Student Activities and Joint Club Board

Any changes made to this constitution must be submitted to the Department of Student Activities and the JCB.

Article X:

DC admits students without regard to their race, religion, color, sex, age, sexual orientation, or national or ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and other activities, generally accorded or made available to members of the organization.

Article XI:

DC considers hazing to be a degrading and destructive activity which is inconsistent with the standards of this student organization. DC recognizes the dignity of every person and opposes all forms of hazing.